Entrepreneurship Education in Training firms

Austrian experiences with a unique principle of education and a challenging teaching method

Gerhard Geissler

Vienna, 11th march 2015

How do you think about this thesis?

that it does not prepare younggraduates for self-employment and business entrepreneurship.

It encourages the students to follow the tradition of job-seeking.

I. Patil, Director of the Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai University

The weakness of our education system is

Agenda

The curriculum for higher vocational schools in Austria

First discussion session Entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship Education Training firm Entrepreneurship Education and the

Training Firm Final discussion session

The curriculum for higher vocational schools in Austria

Clusters of the curriculum for higher vocational schools

ClustersForms

I II III IV V Σ

Personality and Career 6 5 5 4 3 23

Language and Communication 8 9 8 7 8 40

Entrepreneurship – Economy and Management 8 11 12 14 9 54

Society and Culture 2 4 2 2 2 12

Mathematic and Natural Science 5 4 5 5 4 23

Focus Subjects - - 2 2 2 6

29 33 32 34 28 158

Excerpt of the curriculum: The cluster „Entrepreneurship – Economy and Management“

SubjectsForms

I II III IV V Σ

Business 3 3 3 3 2 14

Accounting and Management Control 3 3 3 3 2 14

Business Training, Project Management, Training Firm, Case Studies - 2 2 3 1 8

Informatics - 1 2 2 1 6

Office Management 2 2 2 - - 6

Law - - - 3 - 3

Economics - - - - 3 3

8 11 12 14 9 54

Excerpt of the curriculum: The cluster „Entrepreneurship – Economy and Management“

SubjectsForms

I II III IV V Σ

Business 3 3 3 3 2 14

Accounting and Management Control 3 3 3 3 2 14

Business Training, Project Management, Training Firm, Case Studies - 2 2 3 1 8

Informatics - 1 2 2 1 6

Office Management 2 2 2 - - 6

Law - - - 3 - 3

Economics - - - - 3 3

8 11 12 14 9 54

Competence structure model of the education standards for the cluster “Entrepreneurship – Economy and Management”

cognitive level A B C D E

cont

ent l

evel

func

tiona

l su

bjec

ts

1. enterprise and law A Remembering 2. materials management B Understanding 3. marketing C Applying 4. finance and investment D Analysing 5. human resources E Creating 6. AMC

cros

s se

ctor

su

bjec

ts 7. entrepreneurship

8. management 9. international business 10. economic sectors 11. communication

A Remembering B Understanding C Applying D Analysing E Creating

Normative basis of the competence structure model of the education standards for “Entrepreneurship – Economy and Management”

The education standards are based on:

An economic understanding of an eco-social-market economy

An understanding of enterprises based on the new management-model of St. Gallen

An understanding of competencies based on the definition of Franz Weinert

A polyvalent understanding of formation that allows a general entrance into a professional field

An understanding of education that fosters entrepreneurship education as a principle in the curriculum

Eco-social market economy

St. Gallen Management-Model

Definition of competencies – Franz Weinert

“Competences are those cognitive abilities and skills, motivational, volitional and social dispositions and abilities that are needed for the process of problem solving in variable siutations.”

(Weinert 1999, 2001)

First discussion session

???

How would you adopt this normative basis of Austrian vocational schools into the curricula of your country?

• What type of economy do want?• What is your opinon on the „nature of an

enterprise“?• What should school graduates do after school

and which vocational competencies do they therefore need?

Entrepreneurship

What do we know about successful entrepreneurs?

Requirements Processes The new enterprise

Person

• demographic characteristics

• human capital (content)

• traits (personality)

• values

business idea motivation

entre-preneurial behavior

network team

Organi-zation

business plan location

• strategy• finance• marketing• organization

Extern dimension

micro-social environment

market oppor-tunitiy

current situation

structure of the sector

general macro-economic and social environment

Which of these key factors of successful entrepreneurs can be taught in arranged teaching/learning processes?

Requirements Processes The new enterprise

Person

• demographic characteristics

• human capital (content)

• traits (personality)

• values

business idea motivation

entre-preneurial behavior

network team

Organi-zation

business plan location

• strategy• finance• marketing• organization

Extern dimension

micro-social environment

market oppor-tunitiy

current situation

structure of the sector

general macro-economic and social environment

How should we teach?

School promotes independent thinking and behavior and enhance self-responsible acting. It is supposed to convey the knowledge and skills that will develop my personality and a wide range of task specific competencies that allow my orientation in a modern world.

Nice!Sit down!

Entrepreneurship Education

Entrepreneurial autonomy

• Founding companies• Setting up businesses

Professionalautonomy

Employees asco-entrepreneurs

Level I: Entrepreneurship – business education

Level IV: Entrepreneurship – promoting an “entrepreneurial spirit”

i.e. attitudes such as independence, assumption of responsibility etc.

Level III: Entrepreneurship – promoting civil society (social entrepreneurs)

... through development of pedagogic objectives such as maturity, responsibility & a well-informed outlook

Level II: Entrepreneurship – economics education(context and conditions of market economy)

… Understanding market economy – introduction to micro and macroeconomics & economic policy

Entrepreneurship education between entrepreneurial/professional autonomy and promotion of civil society

Portfolio of competencies of an entrepreneur

Entrepreneurial competence

Professional competence

Metho-dological

competence

Self-competence

Social competence

Entre-preneurial teaching-

learning gap

Know-how Know-what Know-why Know-who Know-when

Basic economic knowledge

+Knowledege about how to

start a business

+ general

knowledge

Procedural knowledge

+Strategic

knowledge

Entrepreneurial attitudes:Curiosity, creativity,

achievement orientation etc.

Ability to comunicate, sensibility

+ Ability to act

autonomously+

Ability to act in Solidarity

Beyond the possibility to

be developped at school or university.

Training firm

The training firm is a place of learning for training and further training of business people where practical knowledge is trained in an action-oriented manner.

A training firm is a virtual enterprise, acting like a real enterprise. The traded goods and the money do not really exist.

What is a training firm?

Entrepreneurship Education in the Training Firm

Business plan as subject-specific

didactic approach to link up business knowledge

and skillsLevel I

Understanding the market economy –including complexeconomic issues

Level II

EntrepreneurshipEntrepreneurship as a curricular/didactic orientation

to determine content of curriculum and skills

Level III – “Entrepreneurship as basic qualification of the citizen” (cf. Faltin/Zimmer 1998, p. 261)

Social business as entrepreneurship’s contribution to a dynamic civil society and thus to the promotion of counter-hegemonic projects

Promotion of entrepreneurial virtues ranging from the spirit of innovation and motivation to the assumption of responsibility for oneself and society

Level IV – Transmission of attitudes and skills for a dynamic economy and society

“Principles of construction” for the curriculum of a training firm on the basis of the four-level model of entrepreneurship education

Final discussion session

???

1. What was new?2. What was interesting?3. What was surprising?4. What do like to know?

Prof. Mag. Dr. Gerhard Geissler, MScDepartment of ManagementInstitut of Business EducationBuilding D2Welthandelsplatz 11020 Vienna

+43 1 313 36 4421gerhard.geissler@wu.ac.at

Thank you!